Stuck in the Labyrinth
by langston.love
Summary: Ron is annoying Hermione about her decisions after the war, trying to make her feel guilty. Everyone's moved on past the prejudices, but him. Draco is stuck in a rut, he hates what his life has turned into. One moment in the library, one girl, one boy, one book, and one author can change everything for these two war changed teens. Epic John Green Quote Challenge


**John Green Quote Challenge by annaisadinosaur**

**Due date 16/01/13**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the harry potter series or any of the characters. Nor the quote used in this challenge.**

**This is my first challenge, and really excited. This is also my first Draco and Hermione story.**

**Please Read and Review, any criticism is helpful**

_Stuck in the Labyrinth_

Hermione was irritated. Ron ambushed her after potions as she entered the main corridor.

"Why were you talking to Parkinson?!" he practically shouted at her. She turned to see Pansy turn back at the sound off her surname, her face turned long. Hermione gave her an apologetic look; she returned it with a curt nod and small smile. Hermione huffed in annoyance, she had put the past behind her, she hated that he couldn't.

"Because Ron, she needed help, and I offered it. Besides we're friends," she countered. She was friends with her, real good friends. Ginny was so preoccupied with Harry that she never talked to Hermione anymore. Pansy sort of took over that position. After the war, she realized that the Light wasn't the only ones that suffered. The rest of her class mates had as well, even the Slytherins. She the first person to extend the olive branch; she talked to Blaise Zambini, even Gregory Goyle who tried to kill her. Even Harry was getting along with some Slytherin, why couldn't Ron let the past be the past.

"You can't be serious! Pug-Face Parkinson!?"

She stopped mid stride, with the look of utter shock and disgust on her face, "RONALD BILLIUS WEASLEY! How could you say something so cruel?!"

"How could you be friends with her?! Did you forget that she wanted to turn Harry over to You-Know-Who?"

"For goodness sake Ronald! He's dead and not coming back, call him Voldemort!" he still flinched at the name, "And as for Pansy, no I didn't forget. I just forgave, moved on, put the past behind me. She was scared, just as we all were; she just reacted differently than we did. We all make mistakes, Ronald!"

She left with a huff leaving Ron standing in the middle of the corridor, while she wondered of to the library to be comforted by the words of her favorite authors, muggle and wizarding alike.

She walked hastily away, down the corridors, almost a run. Ronald Weasley was a stubborn prat. Why was it that he couldn't evolve like the rest of them? She wasn't really paying attention to where she was going as she plowed through the library doors. She was in a type of auto pilot as she walked to her usual place in the far back of the library, the muggle sections. She was focused on the mumbling incoherent words of anger and frustration that escaped her mouth that she failed to see the blonde boy sitting against the book self.

"What are you mumbling about, Granger? What did Weasley do this time?" Draco Malfoy said calmly and nonchalant, as if they had been friends all along. She stared down at him in shock. He hadn't muttered two words to her in the three and half months that they had been back in school. In fact the few times he had spoken it had been to Professor Snape or Pansy.

"What do you want Malfoy?" it came out harsher than she intended.

Draco looked down quickly at his book briefly to close it saving his page, and then looked back up slowly. He stared into her eyes, momentarily before he spoke, "I want a lot of things, Granger. But only one thing you can give me. But that can wait. You want to sit and tell me why you're so upset?" He patted the spot next to him on the ground.

"Why are you even talking to me? You haven't talked to me at all for three plus months, and now you want me to sit and spill my guts?"

He knew she wouldn't have sat down so easily, after all she was Hermione Granger and he was Draco Malfoy, her childhood bully. "I'm not going to hurt you. I just want to talk to you, like you do with the others," he saw something in her eyes change from defiance that it was before to compassion? She still was a little wary, but she sat next him anyway, slowly though. "So using the same words you did, care to spill your guts?" he said with a beautiful smile. This was something she had never before seen. She was captivated by the brilliance of it. It wasn't that smirk that she had accustomed herself with over the years, which she had grown to hate. This was smile. A true smile, produced by joy or something similar.

She graced him with one in return before she remembered what he was asking about, and then it changed into a scowl. "You were right, it was Ronald that has me fuming," she said in a huff, she saw him nod but say nothing so she continued, "Everyone around here has moved on. They've moved pass the house rivalries, and the war".

"The reason everyone did so, was because they were following your lead you know?"

"I figured that much, but they still did so. I hate that he is too stubborn and stuck in his ways to move forward, past all the hatred. He practically bit my head off for being friends with Pansy. Like my friendship with her was an insult to Harry or something".

He saw the sadness flash in her eyes, "Do you regret be coming friends with Pansy?"

She snapped her head to look at him, she saw the confusion written all over his face, "No, no, no! I could never regret that. What I regret is that I can't do anything to help change Ron's mind on any of this. Pansy has been an amazing friend these past months, I've really needed her," she concluded. He saw the sincerity in her eyes. There was a large silence.

"Why'd you do it?"

"Why did I do what?"

"Forgive everyone in Slytherin? Goyle even? We tried to kill you," he shook his head confused.

"We were all children forced to grow up too fast, fight in a war that was not our own. We were all scared and did what we had to, to protect ourselves and the people we love. Over the summer as I was reunited with my mum and dad I realized that that's all any of us were trying to do. I also knew that no one else had thought that because they were too busy trying to focus on their own lives. I wanted, no. I want to make the past stay the past. It's the only thing that I knew that could help do that".

He felt her eyes on him, he looked up and amber met silver, "Do you think you could ever forgive me? I've been the worst to you and your friends. I've called you mudblood, made you cry, hexed you, "

"You also warned me forth year at the Quidditch Cup. "Keep your bushy head down Granger", remember? And you didn't sell us out when we arrived at the Manor," she interrupted.

"But I just stood by and watched. I should have down something, I didn't believe in that pureblood ideology. I should have, made that clear then," he was still holding her eye contact; she could see the sincerity and truth in his eyes as he spoke.

"Draco, there was nothing you could have done. Bellatrix would not have hesitated in killing you and then me. By not doing anything, you saved me".

He reached out suddenly, and grabbed Hermione's arm. His quick movements startled her and she looked down to see him slowly pushing up the fabric of her robe and long sleeve shirt up her arm. Draco's eyes never left her face, he studied her features; the way her eyes bounced up to him then back down to her arm, the way her breath hitched when he began to caress circles on her scar. "I wish I could have saved you from this," his voice was low whisper.

Hermione didn't know what to say, if she should say anything at all. She put her right hand gently over his, as she grabbed his school robe with the left. "This is a reminder of what I've been through, of what I've survived. Draco, this tells me that I can get through anything. And to answer your question, yes I can forgive you, I already have," she looked deep into his eyes, and she saw the relief, she also heard the heavy sigh he let out. It was like by those simple words of forgiveness, the weight of the world was released from his shoulders, and he could breathe again.

They both released each other but instead of sitting up against the back self they turned to face each other cross legged. "Gran-, Hermione, can I ask you something?"

She laughed a slow nervous kind of laugh, "You just did," she said.

He chuckled in return, "I'm serious, Hermione". She smiled at the sound of her name, and nodded. "Why did my father join him? Why did he make me join? Why did he have to ruin my life too? How can I get past this, when everyone that hears my name thinks me evil? "

Hermione sat there quietly for some time, pondering her next words carefully.

"You father probably joined because at the time he felt it would be the best thing for his family. I don't think he fully understood all what Voldemort wanted, or how psychopathic he was. By you joining he was hoping to acquire that standing position that he once had. Or he felt that things couldn't get any worse, so what the hell.

"The best way to get past this Draco is to show that you are not your father; that you are nothing like him. Show the world that you are stronger, and smarter than he ever was. Show them that you care".

"Why did any of this happen?" he mumbled so low she strained herself to hear.

She had thought about this question herself, and found herself coming up empty. No matter what she did, or how much time she devoted to this question, no answer was ever found. She had spent months trying to figure things out, but then she read something that made her decided that despite her extensive knowledge and her uncanny ability to find answers, this was one that she was never going to get.

"A wise man once wrote 'The truth is that in our lives we are all going to encounter questions that should be answered, that deserve to be answered, and yet prove unanswerable'," she said calmly.

"John Green," he said quietly. She looked at him with alarm. "What? I like his stuff. Father never knew, nobody did, except my mother's cousin. My aunt killed him. Just after I was told I locked myself in my room, everyone thought it was because father just got sent to Azkaban. Ha, like I would mourn his loss. Nobody ever knew we were in contact, but as I lie in bed an owl came to my window. It was package that he sent me the morning before he died. I didn't have it in me to read the book until this year," he picked up the book he was reading and showed her the cover, it was _Looking for Alaska,_ "He said it had helped him through the time he was in 'house arrest'; I don't actually know what he meant by that but whatever. He said he got out of his Labyrinth. But the thing is, I can't seem to get out of mine".

He noticed she had a strange look to her face, he had never seen it before, was it awe…? 'Perhaps, but why would she be in awe of him?' he wondered.

"Let me show you something," she said taking the book from his hand. She flipped through the pages until she saw the highlighted mark, "This here is how you get out of it," she said handing the open book back.

He was confused but looked down to read what she meant, "The only way out of the labyrinth of suffering is to… forgive". He looked back up at her and she had a smile on her face, "But how did you know?"

Her smile grew, "Because Draco," she was now kneeling in front of him with a hand gently brushing his cheek, "This was mine. I gave it to Sirius, so he would forgive himself. He must have seen himself in you, and known that you too would need to escape the Labyrinth. You need to forgive those who have done wrong to you; but more importantly you need to forgive yourself. Do you think you can do that?"

He was lost in her eyes, they gave him hope. He knew that he could do it because he knew she wouldn't let him do it alone.

Now Draco was not usually what people would call a brave man, but he summoned all that he had as he inched his face closer towards her. Her breath hitched, but she didn't back away in fact she too moved closer. One hand slid up her leg to rest on the small of her back and the other settled on the back of her neck, he then pulled her the remaining inches to him. He kissed her, but it was not like the other times he had kissed girls; this was slow to start. These kisses expressed his gratitude for it expressed her longing to be understood, and acceptance for who she is. And he too seemed to understand it all.

They heard the clanking of heels coming towards their aisle, and separated both a little out of breath. They smiled at each other while separating more, "Ah Miss Granger, Mr. Malfoy; I'm closing the library now," said Madam Price.

"Thank you, we'll be heading out now," Draco said standing up, he extended his hands to help Hermione up. Once she was on her feet he gathered both of their materials; including his book, formerly Sirius Black's, formerly Hermione's.

Sirius was right, the book was helping him get through the year, but Hermione's explanation helped him so much more. He would never have admitted his feelings for her before this year, but now there was no way for him to deny them.

Sirius had told her that her book had saved him only days before he died ironic right? He had passed it on to Draco.

If there was a Heaven, Sirius would be smiling because he had brought them together. Together, to save each other from themselves. They may not have all the answers, but together they can do anything, they can exit the Labyrinth.

**I know I have two quotes but I really felt that both worked. Looking for Alaska is one of my favorite books. It was recommended by a friend, and I'm sure that it changed my life. I recently finished Fault in Our Stars recently, and I think that John Green likes to make his readers think, and not just enjoy the story, but really think. I love authors that do that. I hope you all enjoyed it. **

**Please, please, pretty please Review! It means so much! Thanks!**


End file.
